The Other Woman
by Sydella
Summary: Expansion of Gokudera's backstory, told from the perspectives of his parents and stepmother. Slight R88 and 5927.


The dainty young woman's hands coaxed haunting, dazzling melodies out of the timeless piano. A reverential silence had settled over the audience and they sat as still as statues, as if glued to their seats. When the performance came to an end, a swell of thunderous applause filled the concert hall.

On a balcony far above the heads of the audience, in a private viewing area, a young man dressed in a dark suit silently observed members of the audience throwing roses at the pianist's feet. Then, he turned and imperiously beckoned for another suited man, who was standing nearby, to come forth. Muttered words were exchanged, and the second man nodded in understanding. A plan had been set into motion.

The next day, the pianist gave another performance, though this time, the venue was considerably less glamourous: a slightly run-down bar known to be frequented by members of the infamous mafia. Nevertheless, the music that flowed from the pianist's delicate fingers was as beautiful as ever, just like its creator, and customers watched her admiringly.

Suddenly, however, the pleasant atmosphere changed abruptly when the doors to the bar flew open to reveal a group of men dressed in dark suits. Customers, instantly recognizing the men as mafiosi, screamed and fled. The barman averted his gaze, knowing he could do nothing to stop the disruption.

While his bodyguards stood outside and prevented anyone else from entering, the young mafia boss who had been sequestered from the teeming masses in the concert hall the previous day enjoyed a private performance. When it was over, he applauded and presented the pianist with a large bouquet of roses. She accepted the gift with a solemn expression and politely murmured her thanks.

"I am Abramo Scorpione," the young mafia boss eagerly introduced himself.

The pianist inclined her head regally. "My name is Lavina Gokudera," she replied.

"Gokudera…" Abramo repeated. He tilted his head and studied her thoughfully. "My apologies. I had not considered the possibility that you are not Italian."

Lavina smiled faintly. "I am half-Italian, half-Japanese."

"Oh?" Abramo smiled back. "Such a rare gem I have found. Beautiful, a talented pianist _and _belongs to two of the loveliest countries in the world."

Lavina tried not to blush. Despite knowing that Abramo was a mafioso-really, it was as plain as day-and that men of his social class and status were always on the prowl for young, impressionable arm candy, she still couldn't help but feel flattered. She leaned forward slightly and Abramo unconsciously copied her. Glancing at them, the barman saw that they were clearly already smitten with each other. He sighed and shook his head. This surely would not end well.

Little did he know how true his prediction would become.

Like magnets attracting each other, like the earth and a plummeting asteroid, the don of the Scorpione and his new lover gravitated towards each other, neither making any attempt to resist the tide of love. They went on trips around the country in his chauffeured limousine, picnicked in parks, frolicked at Mafia Land and indulged their passions in bed. Naturally, the grapevine of the mafia was soon abuzz with talk of Abramo Scorpione's rather indiscreet extramarital affair, and it wasn't long before his wife, Bianca, soon caught wind of the gossip.

To say that Bianca Scorpione was unsurprised by her husband's infidelity would be an understatement. Shortly after both of them graduated from a prestigious academy affiliated with the mafia, a meeting had been arranged between her and Abramo. By the end of the meeting, a political marriage had been agreed on for the sake of strengthening their families' alliance. Their daughter, Bianchi, was born three years later. The fact that her daughter had been named after her did nothing to mollify Bianca. In fact, if anything, it struck her as a pathetic attempt to salvage an already floundering marriage. Nothing would ever change Abramo's disappointment over Bianca's failure to give him a son.

In the patriarchal world of the mafia, male heirs were vastly preferred and only a few roles were available to the females-wife, mother, mistress, sidekick. That was the unfair reality Bianca and others like her were faced with. Harsh but true. And so she kept quiet, playing the gracious hostess at her husband's endless cocktail parties and pretending not to notice when the dons of various other mafia families gave her pitying looks. Then, when she thought things couldn't possibly get any worse, Abramo's mistress, a mere slip of a girl, gave birth to a healthy baby boy named Hayato. Hours after his birth, he was officially declared heir to the Scorpione and Bianca was informed that she had a new son. Seething, she stormed to the nearest hospital, where the boy had been born, and readied herself to finally confront the _other woman _once and for all.

Once she was inside the paediatric ward, a nurse led her to a bed near a window. On the bed lay a pale, slender young woman with long, fair hair. In the woman's arms was a dozing new-born. _My son, _Bianca thought. For reasons she couldn't begin to fathom, she felt like crying. Bending down to get a closer look at the new-born's wrinkled red face, she was startled when the pale young woman spoke. "You must be Abramo's wife."

Bianca looked up and the two women locked gazes. The wife and the mistress, face to face at long last. The queen and the concubine playing a game in which neither side could win. Bianca straightened and replied firmly, "Yes, I am."

Her husband's lover-Bianca vaguely recalled that the woman's name was Lavina-nodded. They looked back at the new-born. Soon, Abramo's men would arrive and motherhood would be conferred on Bianca for the second time. Hayato would leave the arms of the woman who had given birth to him and grow up in the Scorpione's luxurious headquarters, blissfully unaware of the truth behind his parentage. Bianca felt like she should say something, but what could she say? "I'm sorry that your son has to be taken from you, but I'm his new mother now"? No, there was nothing she could say. She settled for stroking the new-born's hair-white, like his birth mother's-and Lavina did not object.

When Scorpione mafiosi entered the ward at a stately pace that did not disguise their eagerness to see their new boss-to-be, Lavina slowly settled Hayato in Bianca's waiting arms. As men in dark suits surrounded them, Lavina said with a sad, tired smile, "Please promise that you will do for our son what I cannot."

A thousand snappy comebacks raced through Bianca's mind. _I don't owe you anything. You think you can just waltz into my husband's life and take his love away from me? I already have a daughter. Your son is just a painful reminder of a failed marriage. _But tears pricked her eyes and she said in a voice that did not sound like her own, "I promise."

Lavina sank back onto the pillows on her hospital bed and closed her eyes. "Thank you," she whispered.

Bianca tenderly cradled little Hayato as her husband's men ushered her out. She did not look back at Lavina. Sometimes a woman must not look back, no matter how much she wants to.

Bianca did her best to keep her promise. She scheduled piano lessons for Hayato after finding out that he had inherited Lavina's love for the instrument. She hired skilled tutors who shaped him into an intelligent and thoughtful child. Whenever Hayato fell ill, she nursed him back to health. When Hayato and Bianchi fought, she fulfilled the role of mediator while her husband was preoccupied with leading his men. And when Lavina died in a car accident, she shielded Hayato from the truth and told him that the nice lady who taught him piano had gone on a trip.

Later that night, she lay on the marriage bed she shared with her husband out of obligation, and listened to him sob quietly. Part of her wanted to comfort him, and the rest of her resisted. In the end, sleep overcame her and her dreams were invaded by innocent white-haired new-borns and ill-fated young women who stared at her sadly as if to say _Ah, look, and behold the misfortune that has befallen us, the monstrous pain our lives have created. _

Five years later, as the universe would have it, Hayato learned the awful truth and ran away before anyone could stop him. Out of sheer desperation, Bianca requested the assistance of an old acquaintance. To her surprise, Dr Shamal agreed to take care of Hayato and didn't even ask for anything in return. She tried to visit Hayato, but he refused to see her. In fact, he refused to see anyone from the Scorpione, and soon began working for other families, marking his departure from his former life. Bianca could only watch from afar as Hayato endured mistreatment from one abusive mafia boss after another. Meanwhile, she and Abramo grew increasingly distant until one day, she suggested divorce and he agreed without so much as a word of protest.

Years went by. Hayato grew into a belligerent young man with all of his birth mother's beauty and none of her serenity. Once again, he ran away before anyone could stop him, this time to Japan. A bemused Shamal informed Bianca that Hayato had nattered on about defeating a Japanese boy named Tsunayoshi Sawada even if it was the last thing he did.

"He's going to get himself killed," Bianca fretted, wringing her hands and pacing Shamal's living room. "I've heard that the Sawada boy is mentored by my daughter's boyfriend, the sun Arcobaleno. Bianchi tells me that Reborn is the most dangerous hitman she's ever met. Even Hayato can't possibly stand a chance against Sawada if Sawada's being tutored by Reborn!"

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Shamal replied, patting her shoulder distractedly as he peered at a group of teenage girls walking down the street.

"No, he won't!" Bianca furiously wiped tears from her eyes and looked at him accusingly. "You've been a father to him but now that he's on a suicide mission, you just don't care."

"I _do _care." Shamal pinched the bridge of his nose. "Okay, look, I'll go to Japan too, all right? I'll keep an eye on him there."

"Please do." Bianca turned away. "I'm counting on you to protect my son."

Shamal sighed and reluctantly began to make travel arrangements. Upon arriving in Japan, he located the small town of Namimori-and soon discovered that Hayato had not only failed to kill Sawada, but had also apparently fallen in love with him and was now following him around like a groupie.

Torn between amusement, relief and a feeling that some higher power, somewhere, might be having a good-natured laugh at their expense, Shamal speed-dialed Bianca and wondered how best to deliver the surprising news.

Abramo's life came to an end three years after Hayato joined the Vongola. More than two decades of mourning had gradually taken a toll on him and one morning, while laying flowers on Lavina's grave, he simply keeled over and died. Bianca wore black, thanked various people for their condolences and oversaw preparations for the funeral. Not as a wife, not as a friend, but as a former adversary who had come to terms with their shared past.

With prompting from Tsuna and Reborn, Hayato and Bianchi returned to see their father one last time. Bianca greeted them warmly and when Hayato tried to apologise, the words stuck in his throat. Bianca gently shushed him and embraced both of her children. "It's all right," she murmured. "You're home now. We still have each other."

And they all knew that was true.

**Author's Notes: Abramo is the Italian form of Abraham, which means "father of many". Somehow, it struck me as a fitting name for him.**

**Scorpione is Italian for "scorpion". I chose it because Bianchi has a scorpion tattoo and is a Scorpio. I think it would make sense for her to come from a family that has some connection to scorpions.**

**Sorry if the ending is a little anticlimactic. **


End file.
